Well, I am just guessing about why the silence on SDLT, but it sounded to me as though it is a much more complicated product launch than most, and not just because of technology challenges and the challenge of backward compatibility. But because it is, as MB said, a "family" of products, and not just one or even two products. And, of course, who knows, maybe there is a new product in there as well that we don't know about. Back when they first bought Meridian, I recall them talking about somehow combining SNAP with tape drives and creating a whole new class of NAS with backup built in. But again, I am just guessing. We will have to be patient along with Mr. Dean and everyone else. Well, everyone but CPQ. I expect that they, in return for making SDLT their exclusive backup tape drive (according to MB in the CC), know everything that there is to know about SDLT, and deservedly so.
Below is the release that I suspect you were referring to RE: Benchmark, along with Overland. DSS still participates in this technology, both via license and via their equity in Benchmark. It could well be that they told Benchmark that they will eventually drop the 4000 and not compete with DLT1. Why bother, they probably make a similar amount of money from the license without the bother of manufacturing 4000s, and they make even more money from media sales, which is really what they want to drive anyway. The more DLT drives out there better for them.
I forgot to say in the CC notes that they spoke a little about LTO in response to an analyst question (no one, BTW, asked about a M2 threat or even referred to it; it was damned by silence). MB said that IDC expects LTO to get a 15% market share over the next 3-4 years, split among the three vendors. He claimed that they project that over the next two years (CY00 and CY01, I think he meant), there will be 550,000-600,000 SDLT systems sold, compared to to between 30,000 and 60,000 LTO systems. In other words, still growth in new systems, though flattish growth, with much of the profitibility coming from add-on media sales as the installed base grows.
They said that 25% of their revenue last Q came from storage system sales, and 25% from media sales. Storage system revenue should continue to grow at 40-45%, while media should grow at somewhat less than 20% while drive revenue should be flat to down over the next 6 months, then flat to modestly higher over the 6 months after that, with improving profitibility due to cost reductions. Still comes out to decent growth, especially for a stock that now trades at a PE of abou 9, and has over $2/share in cash. After this year is where the company will get more exciting, I think, presuming as I do that storage systems will continue 40-45% growth and will drag up the growth rate of the company as a whole.
Overland Ships DLT1 Tape Solutions
Shipments Begin Earlier than Anticipated
SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 25, 2000--Overland Data, Inc.
(Nasdaq:OVRL - news), a technology leader in tape backup products, today
announced that it has begun shipments of DLT1 stand-alone drives as well as automation solutions built around
affordable DLT1 technology. This marks another significant move in Overland's corporate strategy to supply a wide
range of entry-level to enterprise storage solutions.
The products, originally forecasted to ship in calendar Q2, actually began shipping worldwide in Q1. Overland's
standalone 40 GB (native) DLT1 tape subsystem carries a $1495 (MSRP) and the DLT1 award-winning
LoaderXpress(TM), creates a 400 GB capacity autoloader solution with sub-$5000 pricing (MSRP).
According to Steve Richardson, Vice President of Marketing for Overland, ``Overland customers can now deploy an
affordable DLT-based automated solution and take advantage of Overland's award-winning robotics technology that
have been verified in thousands of installations worldwide as well. Both Overland and Benchmark are committed to
bringing what we believe are excellent storage systems to market that provide significant value. We are pleased that our
close working relationship has resulted in achieving that goal earlier than anticipated.''
``Benchmark's DLT1 tape drive and Overland's LoaderXpress provide the server market with a powerful and affordable
data management solution. Overland's autoloader is an innovative DLT1 solution with 10 cartridge capacity, an
award-winning robotic design and the convenience of a media magazine, offering outstanding value in industry-standard
DLT technology,'' said Charlene Murphy, Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing at Benchmark.
The DLT1-based products bring Overland customers economical additions to the company's comprehensive storage
solutions and leverage the unprecedented value of the DLT1 format. They open up the robustness and reliability of DLT
technology to customers that have previously been limited to 4mm and 8mm products. DLT1 is backward
read-compatible with the DLT4000, offering an excellent growth path for current DLT4000 customers. With its full line
of AIT, DLT(a) and DLT1 automated solutions, along with its Travan, Ditto and Tecmar tape products, Overland is
extremely well positioned to support the range of needs from the entry-level to enterprise environments.
Based on technology licensed from Quantum Corp., the Benchmark DLT1 tape drive offers 80 GB of compressed
capacity and a 6 MB/second compressed transfer rate, so small- to medium-sized storage servers or workstations can be
backed up on one single tape cartridge. Its soft unload capability was designed specifically for automation. Along with
its leading price/performance metrics, the Benchmark DLT1 offers organizations a clear migration path because it is
read-compatible with the DLT4000 and utilizes DLTtape(a) IV media.
Overland's LoaderXpress, which CRN called ``a cornerstone product for networking VARs,'' established new standards
for DLT loaders in the areas of ease of use, with a convenient cartridge magazine design; customer choice, with three
models that address a broad spectrum of storage requirements; and field-proven reliability with mainframe-class
robotics technology, benefits which are missing in competitive DLT loaders. With a 10-cartridge capacity model, the
DLT1 LoaderXpress delivers native storage capacity that permits the average PC server to be backed up for two months
without any operator intervention.
LoaderXpress is supported by the leading data management and backup software applications from Legato, Computer
Associates and Veritas on all major computing platforms, including Windows NT(a) Server, Sun Solaris(a), IBM
AIX(a), HP-UX(a), Linux and Novell NetWare(a). In addition to the unmatched reliability and value, LoaderXpress
customers are protected by Overland's exclusive three-year warranty, the longest in the industry.
Overland DLT products are backed by the company's innovative Guaranteed Up Time Service (GUTS(TM)) warranty
program guaranteeing 99 percent uptime performance and 100 percent data recovery, the only guarantee of its kind in the
industry. All products are covered by Overland's XchangeNOW program, which provides immediate replacement if an
issue cannot be resolved by Overland Technical Support via phone.
About Overland
Overland Data, Inc. (Nasdaq:OVRL - news) is a global supplier of innovative data storage and storage automation
solutions for computer networks. The Company's award-winning DLT LibraryXpress(TM) SmartScale Storage©
architecture has set new standards for intelligent automated storage and scalability and established Overland as a leader in
the mid-range tape storage market. Today, Overland is broadening its product line and technology offerings to address
additional segments of the storage market, including the entry-level small-business market, as well as the higher-end
enterprise environment. Overland's patented Variable Rate Randomizer (VR2(TM)) data encoding technology, capable
of substantially increasing the capacity and throughput of linear tape formats, is being applied by the Company to Travan
tape drives, and has been licensed to Seagate Technology, Tandberg Data and Imation Corp. Overland products,
acclaimed for their quality and reliability, are sold worldwide through leading OEMs, including Compaq, IBM, Fujitsu
Siemens Computers and Groupe Bull, commercial distributors such as Ingram Micro, Tech Data Corp. and Bell
Microproducts, as well as storage integrators and value-added resellers.
(a) DLT and DLTtape are trademarks of Quantum Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their
respective owners.
Except for the factual statements made herein, the information contained in this news release consists of
forward-looking statements that involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Words and
expressions reflecting optimism and satisfaction with current prospects, as well as words such as ``believe,'' ``intends,''
``expects,'' ``plans,'' ``anticipates,'' and variations thereof, identify forward-looking statements, but their absence does not
mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of performance, and
the Company's actual results could differ materially from those contained in such statements. Factors that could cause or
contribute to such differences include unexpected shortages of critical components, rescheduling or cancellation of
customer orders, loss of a major customer, the timing and market acceptance of new product introductions by the
Company and its competitors, general competition and price pressures in the marketplace, and the Company's ability to
control costs and expenses. Reference is also made to other factors set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities
and Exchange Commission including the ``Risk Factors,'' ``Management's Discussion and Analysis'' and other sections
of the Company's Form 10-K for the most recently completed fiscal year. These forward-looking statements speak only
as of the date of this release, and the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking
statements to reflect new information, events or circumstances after the date of this release. |
